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May 23, 2018

"The Hobbit" Facsimile Boxed Set - Update

Hey all, hope you're well! I'm going to give that long-overdo update later this week, but before the weekend.

However, I've got another post, and it's Tolkien related.

The last thing I need is another copy of The Hobbit.....but look at these goodies!!

Here is the official description of the facsimile boxed set coming out in time for Hobbit Day 2018:

"This sumptuous gift set includes a replica of the very rare first edition of The Hobbit, the only edition where one can now read the original version of the story before Tolkien re-edited it to become the one enjoyed by readers since 1951.

The Hobbit was published on 21 September 1937, with a print run of 1,500 copies. With a beautiful cover design, nearly a dozen black & white illustrations and two black & red maps by the author himself, the book proved to be popular and was reprinted shortly afterwards. History was already being made.

The scarcity of the first edition has resulted in copies commanding huge prices, way beyond the reach of most Tolkien fans. In addition, subsequent changes to the text – particularly those to chapter 5, when Tolkien decided in 1947 to revise the text to bring it better into accord with events as they were developing in its ‘sequel’, The Lord of the Rings – mean that the opportunity to read the book in its original form and format has become quite difficult.

This special commemorative gift set includes the first edition, so that readers of all ages – not just ‘children between the ages of 5 and 9’, as Rayner Unwin famously declared in his report on the original submission – can finally enjoy Tolkien’s story as it originally appeared. It also includes an exclusive CD of archive recordings that capture Tolkien reading from The Hobbit, a special copy of Thror’s map which reveals the secret moon-runes when held to the light, and an accompanying booklet that relates the history of The Hobbit, and includes connected writings by JRR Tolkien."

And here's what you get inside:

- A replica of the first edition containing the original version of the story before Tolkien re-edited it in 1947 (original editions are rare and pricey so few have had the chance to read this, until now)- A special copy of Thror’s map which reveals the secret moon-runes when held to the light, as Tolkien first intended (but never enjoyed, as the map became endpapers instead)- A CD of archive recordings that capture Tolkien reading from The Hobbit, including three previously unreleased excerpts- A colour illustrated booklet that recounts the history of The Hobbit, plus connected writings by JRR Tolkien, including the never-before-published lecture ‘Dragons’ that he gave to children in Oxford on New Year’s Day 1938 to promote The Hobbit.- A 3D lenticular cover based on Tolkien's own original book jacket design.